1. Field of the Invention
The present invention relates to improvements in or relating to packaging, and is more particularly concerned with the packaging of paper in boxes.
2. Description of the Prior Art
It is well known that paper for photocopying apparatus, and for other uses, is supplied in boxed form, typically each box of A4 or A3 paper containing five reams of paper (a ream is 500 sheets) depending on the weight of the paper, for example, 80 gm.sup.-2 or 100 gm.sup.-2, each ream being packaged separately. Each box comprises a base portion and a lid portion which is secured to the base portion by means of a plastic band which passes around the box. In most cases, it is preferred that the stack of paper within the box takes the weight of additional boxes stacked on top thereof so that the box maintains its integrity.
Each box is formed by placing a stack of five packaged reams of paper on a blank from which the base portion of the box is to be made, the stack being positioned on the portion of the blank which will form the base of the box. The other portions of the blank are folded up around the stack and glued in position to form the base portion. The lid portion of the box is formed in a similar way, that is, the blank corresponding to the lid portion is placed on top of the stack (which is now inside the base portion) and folded and glued accordingly. The lid portion of the box is secured to the base portion by the plastic band.
Such a band is often used as a means of carrying the box of paper and this damages the box as well as the uppermost and lowermost reams of paper inside the box. Furthermore, the band is often difficult to remove and needs to be safely disposed of. Moreover, as the paper size increases, it becomes more difficult to carry the box of paper, and if the plastic band is used, it can cut into a person's fingers due to the increased weight.
The following disclosures may be relevant to various aspects of the present invention:
GB-A-2 288 591 discloses a box for products in sheet form which comprises a base portion and a lid portion which is adhered to the base portion along two opposed sidewalls using adhesive The lid portion is provided with a tear-off perforation strip on one of the opposed sidewalls above the adhesive so that, when access to the box is required, the strip is readily detached from the lid portion to allow access to the interior of the box.
In U.S. Pat. No. 5,105,950, a cardboard carton is provided which has a body with opposite side and end walls, closed bottom, and an open top defined by a top edge. A lid is fastened to a carton body by glue or other means fastening the bottom fastening sections of the lid to the carton body side wall. Typically, the carton is filled with material to be packaged extending from the carton bottom in a stack up past the top edge of the carton body.
It is therefore an object of the present invention to provide an improved packaging system for paper which overcomes the problems discussed above.